The 2024 “Weekly Highlights” record so far: 16 amazing releases from all across the proggy board!

Prog debut album of the week, Sweden & vocal edition: Quantum are coming sliding “Down the Mountainside” and they’re coming in hot! After an already quite yummy taster with their Tom MacLean (ex-Haken, ex-ToMera) produced 2020, idiomatically titled “The Next Breath of Air” EP, they go the full distance here and what a distance it is! Their bio says “A dynamic range spanning from jazz ballad to bursts of metal, combined with classical form, jazz harmony and proggy rhythms – all while focusing on groove and melody – creates a sound that is quite something else.” – and I couldn’t have said it better. All of this is true – and more! This is officially the first band ever that reminds me of the inimitable Heaven’s Cry from Canada in places, partly thanks to the engaging vocal delivery over frantic rhythmic madness… And despite all the complexity, Quantum manage to keep a maximum level of catchiness. I really start asking myself what magic potion must have been on that mountain, and I seriously can’t wait to see what else will be coming down its side… Dario

Prog debut album #2, Norway & (mostly) instrumental edition: let’s take a ‘5 Mile’ walk in the Uncanny valley on “Shroomsday”. We might even stumble upon a ‘Circadian Rhythm’. At least I did try the ‘Uncut’ ‘Noobjax’ (whatever that is) and ended up in a stage of ‘Pseudade’. Do I need to say more? Well, I really think you should make the journey yourself to experience the ‘Music for the Faint Hearted’. It is as crazy and cool as it sounds, believe me! Dario

Let’s stay a bit longer in Norway, shall we? “Solemn” is In Vain’s fifth album in 21 years of their existence and the moment I listened to it for the first time was exactly one of those times where I asked myself: why didn’t I listen to them sooner? They’ve got everything down to perfection when it comes to exciting progressive death metal with hints to pagan and black metal here, so naturally Borknagar come to mind at times, especially in the clean vocal timbre – a quick check of the line-up reveals Sindre Nedland as one of the vocalists, the younger brother of Borknagar’s Lars A. Nedland. Not entirely unlike their big brother band, they have a multiple vocalist attack and know how to use it to great effect. After some brass and string guests enrich In Vain’s sound on the penultimate ‘Eternal Waves’ and a particularly doomy intro, they end “Solemn” on an incredibly epic note with ‘Watch for me on the Mountain’. Transcending the mortal world at the end of all things. Oh wait no, the chaos is breaking through once more in one final, proggy breakdown. But then back to the peaceful, solemn mountain. A mandatory listen for all progressive death metal fans! Dario

We’re heading back to Sweden with Progmetal five-piece Loch Vostok and the second part of their “Opus Ferox” trilogy – An album that is definitely a worthy highlight and will clearly end in a top spot of this year’s releases for me, but I’m still struggling to find the right words for it. Everything is done right here – from the expressive vocals over the excellent playing skills to the wonderful creativity and dynamics in their compositions, melted together by a mighty, yet detailed production – without bringing one element explicitly into the focus or a song standing out. It’s the entirety that makes this proggy beast special, growing on me spin after spin with its dense atmosphere, so no more words from me other than the highest recommendation to dive in! Katha

The third album is the ‘make it or break it’ album, they say. Well, we got two third albums this week, and in both cases I’ve got the strong feeling that the bands in question already did establish their names as some of the prime voices in their respective subgenres. Besides Dutch dark doom proggers of Dool (see below), Scottish post doom sludgers of Dvne also presented their third full length last Friday in the form of “Voidkind”, and even though one should think they don’t really have to prove anything anymore after the underground hit debut “Asheran” and the highly acclaimed follow up “Etemen Ænka”, in this fast-lived day and age every band seems to be forced to constantly prove their continued relevance in some way. Well, in that regard I don’t think they have to worry at all if they continue to keep churning out bangers like “Voidkind”. Their European tour has just started, check the dates and get your tickets now: https://www.songsofarrakis.com/pages/tour Dario

An excellent companion album to Dvne’s “Voidkind” (or vice versa) is Dool’s third album “The Shape of Fluidity”, bearing some similarities in sound and atmosphere, but certainly leaning more towards a dark rock sound compared to Dvne’s partly abrasive post metal-sludginess. A slight doom edge is certainly not uncommon for both bands. I can’t even say why I had the feeling that Dool’s sophomore effort “Summerland” didn’t really hit as hard as the more than well-received 2017 debut “Here Now, There Then”. What I can say for sure though is that most of “The Shape of Fluidity” continues seamlessly where they left off seven years ago, even managing to top it in sound, scope and performance. Raven van Dorst’s voice is as haunting as ever, the compositions gripping, the atmosphere dense and goosebumps inducing. Even more so live, if past experiences are any indication so I can’t wait to see Dool back on stage doing what they do best: mesmerize their audience! (Here are all the upcoming tour dates confirmed so far: https://allthosewhowanderaredool.com/#live ) Dario

Have you ever wondered why Toehider isn’t more popular? Well, I have for sure and so has Mr. Toehider Mike Mills apparently. I was absolutely delighted to see the news that he’s „Space Famous“ at least. Where #02 out of his XII in XII project (12 EPs composed and recorded over 12 months), “Snapshots from Beacontown Spring Dance ‘85”, went full on 80s glam rock, the majority of #08, “Space Famous”, (excluding the final title track) fully indulges in gorgeous synthwave vibes. And with an irresistible earworm like the chorus of ‘Space Famous’, it’s no wonder Toehider is famous in space. High time us earthlings rectify that situation down here as well, don’t you think? Dario

Genuinely operatic black metal that’s not just some lackluster ‘orchestrations’ that barely deserve that name slapped on top of some boring riffs? Add to that members of Imperial Triumphant and Kilter and, most importantly, crowned by the insane vocals of Andromeda Anarchia, who just recently released one of the craziest albums (at least vocally) of the year so far with “La Suspendida”? Don’t mind if I do at all. On “Weibermacht”, the second album from the aptly titled Folterkammer (‘torture chamber’) project, we get to hear more of her expertly executed operatic vocals, sometimes some Monika Edvardsen-era Atrox worthy stunt vocals, and most of all a sheer lust of bringing the seemingly disparate subject matters of feminism and BDSM together. Returning the provocative nature to black metal while also adding a kinky side to it that is meant completely serious and tongue-in-cheek at the same time (as far as I understand it), feels like a long overdue live-cell therapy for a genre stuck between hipster blackgaze on the one hand and endless war fantasies on top of ‘oh we’re so blasphemous because we use christ and fuck in the same sentence’ on the other. I exaggerate of course, but that doesn’t take away from the fact that “Weibermacht” feels incredibly refreshing. Dario

What once was a duo project in Venezuela is now a full black metal band in Chile. But that’s not the only evolution to be found here. Selbst have been around since 2010, and this week, I want to talk about their third album, “Despondency Chord Progressions”. Most of what to expect in a black metal record can be found here; however, there’s a twist. As you make your way through the first few songs (which do sound great, mind you), the album takes an unexpected turn and goes into post-metal territory with clean vocals. A pleasant surprise, if I do say so myself! Already, the intense chords and fast drums were powerful enough to pull in any extreme metal fan, but this is a prog site. So, I have to pull in you, our readers, one way or another to try some cool heavier stuff that’s arguably not very proggy. But fans of prog will definitely appreciate this! For what black metal has to offer, it’s quite unique and versatile… and I love it! If you happen to be familiar with the black metal scene enough, then I can recommend this to you, especially if you’re also a fan of Der Weg einer Freiheit, Acathexis, and Gaerea. Enjoy this ride of aggressive yet beautiful sounds! Colin

Oh hello there! Is this avant garde djent or what? French project Caeli Concept returns with their second album “Lunaison”, which promises to become an incredibly diverse affair already during the opener ‘These Cold Woods’. With top notch guest performances by Klone’s Yann Ligner (with his most brutal vocal discharge in years), Heli Andrea (ex-Mobius) and Youtuber 2SICH, it even gets more and more diverse as the album progresses with lots of unexpected twists and turns that keep up the thrilling tension over the whole 40-minute distance of the album Fascinating and intriguing. Dario

There are certain genre tags that don’t go well together for me, like Progressive Punk or Speed Doom Metal 😉 yet I’m always curious, and happy to be convinced of the opposite – And so did Fierce Deity a while ago with a special kind of Stoner Power Metal. Hailing from Tasmania, the man behind this project is multi-instrumentalist and composer Jonathon Barwick. His new album is called “A Terrible Fate“, and like the epic debut “Power, Wisdom, Courage”, it is crowned by a stunning piece of art from Ryan T.Hancock. Lyrically inspired by fantasy games and movies, he strikes again with heavy riffs, a slow but intense groove, and anthemic vocal harmonies. Most of the songs work very well with this formula, plus the more balladic ‘Paralysis (Into the Wind)’ adds a welcome change with a long instrumental part, and a wonderful, melancholic “fire pit”-vibe. By melting the groove of Stoner with the melody and lyrical language of Power Metal, Fierce Deity takes the listener on a mighty sounding journey. While there is some length during ‘Storm Temple’, the additional, new elements like sparkling keyboards, Hammond Organ or spooky sounds, as well as the songs’ development in the second half make it absolutely worth going through the whole piece. Crank it up – But beware! These melodies are highly addictive… Katha

The sludgy, doomy side of things were expertly taken care of by Scottish desert post metal collective Dvne (see mini review above). A band that might be featured at certain festival bills alongside them even though covering a distinctively lighter sound in stoner/hard rock realms with proggy flourishings is Solar Blooms from Lutsk, Ukraine. Their debut album “Akh​á​li Dz​á​lis Dabad​é​ba” is an absolutely solid piece of work that manages to sound relaxed and engaging at the same time. A pre-requisite of any stoner band I’d say, but delivered in exemplary fashion on this first sign of life by a cool trio of accomplished musicians. Dario

The part of covering the fusion realms of prog falls into the capable hands of Chicago-based trio Son of Ra (plus guests) with their excellent “Tropic of Cancer” EP this week. The six part journey emanates a special ‘live’ feeling, even though it was not (or at least not entirely) recorded in a live setting if I understand it correctly. As obscure reference points sound wise, things like instrumental Taal, metal-less BaK or a heavier Human Touch come to mind, but I can’t be sure if anyone reading this will pick up on this. Regardless, “Tropic of Cancer” is still highly recommended for fans of instrumental prog and fusion with strong eastern folk influences. Dario

While we covered lots of different prog and also non-prog/prog-adjacent stuff this week already, some classic progressive rock was still missing. Luckily New York based solo artist Tyler Kamen comes to the rescue with “Cornucopia Modus”, which is, according to his Bandcamp page, “The final chapter in the Vegetable Gnome Trilogy and the prequel to the Spectacular Machine Trilogy…”. I’ll leave the lore digging to the inclined nerd. The fun thing about it musically seems to be a certain pastoral feel I’d associate first and foremost with Norwegian and British acts of course. So this is certainly much more The Chronicles of Father Robin (or less heavy Azure) rather than Neal Morse. A vegetable tribe? A lizard house? Gnome City? Artichoke Hearts? I feel bamboozled! And that’s a good thing. I think… 😉 Dario

Johan Niemann seems to be dropping unannounced solo albums and EPs left and right ever since surprising us with the absolutely amazing “Karnivore” last year. Best known as the bass player for Swedish prog metal heroes Evergrey, none of these solo offerings had anything to do with metal at all. But where “Karnivore” was already a pretty synthy affair, “Frankly…” is reducing almost all of that bubbly fretless bass gorgeousness (luckily not on all the songs), Johan replaced it with even more equally smooth and bubbly synths. It’s a pure synth love affair and just like with “Karnivore”, I can’t get enough of it. I wanna bathe in these synths like they’re a wonderfully warm whirlpool. Gimme more! Dario

Having called Advent Horizon’s last studio album “A Cell to Call Home” a “perfect feel good album that isn’t missing any depth despite the permeating positive vibes” in my mini review last year seems like an excellent prerequisite to a little 4 song live EP that the Utah-based proggers recorded live in studio for their international fans with the video versions readily watchable on the band’s YouTube channel as well. And well, what can I say, at the risk of repeating myself: ‘How Did It Get So Good?’ And that’s the truth. Dario